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The reality is that stuff like Fingerprints are pretty useless unless you have a suspect already (fingerprints can tie a suspect to a crime scene, but in and of themselves they seldom ever are useful in capturing a crook).
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That's only partially true today, Jack, and it's getting better by the day. Having a specific suspect is of course a big plus and saves a lot of time, but it's not completely necessary. The FBI has a huge center in WV that maintains a fingerprint database of almost everyone that's been arrested (and others that have sensitive LE or gov. positions). A lot of small agencies aren't on board yet when it comes to submitting prints, but it's getting better. When we get a John Doe or a set of prints from a priority case, we FAX them to the center and usually have a positive ID within 20 minutes. The problems come in when dealing with first-timers (as adults)
and juveniles. Law prohibits maintaining fingerprint or photo files of juveniles, and that is, of course, a huge problem since a big chunk of violent crime in this country is committed by juveniles.